Today we’re going to be talking about five ways you can invest in real estate.

Buy and rent. This is probably the most traditional way to invest in real estate, and it simply involves buying a property and renting it out. Now is a good time to do this because rental rates are on the rise. They’re up 8% from last year, which is pretty good if you’re looking to invest this way.

Buy and sell. This is typically called “flipping.” Home flipping offered a record-breaking 49% return in 2016. Mind you, this is a national figure and won’t necessarily be the case in any particular local market. Contact your real estate professional to determine the climate of your particular market.

Real estate investment groups. These are organizations that buy a set of properties and sell them to individual investors. The main benefit of this approach is that you typically do not need to act as a landlord because the investment group handles property management for you.

Crowdfunding sites. There has been an explosion of these sites in recent times. They allow people to invest in various real estate development projects. You can be a part of a large-scale property by only investing a moderate amount of money. On the other hand, crowdfunding sites act as a middle-man and charge fees which will eat into your profits a little bit.

REIT (real estate investment trust). REITs are like mutual funds for real estate. They typically pay high dividends; however, they do not offer all of the typical benefits of investing in real estate such as increased leverage and tax benefits.

Each of these investment approaches offers a trade-off between possible profits and costs. The one constant is that you can maximize your risks with due diligence and by consulting with an experienced real estate professional.

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Each of these investment approaches offers a trade-off between possible profits and costs.

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If you have any questions or ideas about a future topic to discuss, please feel free to call or email me. If we use your topic for a blog, we’ll send you a $20 gift card to a local vendor.Make it a great day!

If you’re in the market to sell a home, you might consider selling it on your own as a For Sale By Owner (FSBO). To help you make your decision, I want to share some important points that are all contained in this nice infographic from Homelight. Here are the pros and cons you should consider before deciding to sell your home with or without an agent:Pro: You’re in control. You get to make the decisions on pricing, marketing, staging, and everything else. You make the final say.Con: Criticism. Dealing with criticism and rejection is part of a real estate agent’s life. Are you prepared to take that criticism on as well? Do you even want to?Pro: The trust factor. Do you know which buyer’s agents to trust and which to avoid? A professional real estate agent does.Con: Objectivity. Will you be able to see your home through the eyes of a buyer? You may think you have a neutral perspective, but you have so many emotions and memories wrapped up in the home, which means being objective is going to be a challenge.

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Will you be able to see your home through the eyes of a buyer?

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Pro: You already have the knowledge. If you have prior real estate and/or marketing knowledge, you can put that to good use without having to hire someone else to do it.Con: Having real estate sales expertise. Real estate sales is different from any other business I’ve ever heard of. There are a lot of nuances, especially in the Alaska market, that you need to be aware of in order to have success.Pro: No commission fee. That’s probably the biggest reason you’d want to do this on your own anyway.Con: Slower sale. If you want a slower sale with a few possible price reductions sprinkled in, be my guest and try to sell on your own.As you can see, there are plenty of pros and cons to selling your home on your own. If you want your next sale to be successful, profitable, and convenient, don’t hesitate to give me a call or send me an email. I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Why work with us?

Madden Real Estate is a unique concept for the Alaska real estate market. The first of its kind in Alaska, Madden Real Estate (MRE) is a locally owned, team-centric real estate firm specializing in residential, commercial real estate sales and exceptional client service. For the past four years, Madden Real Estate has been ranked as one of the top 50 teams in the U.S. according to the Wall Street Journal.

What our clients have to say

"Our beautiful new home had gone unsold after months on the market with another real estate firm. We turned to The Madden Team, and they enthusiastically showed us what they could do to help us connect with buyers. Within a matter of weeks, a happy new homeowner was moving in!!! We were so pleased with the whole process and can't wait to work with the Madden Team again soon!"

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"Wes Madden and his team went over and above what I expected from an agent. I was offered a new position with my company and needed to sell as soon as possible, to close on another home. Wes imedieatly started the process and got the house listed and helped with setting it up to show. Within 2 weeks we had a full offer and the process went as smooth as expected. Wes's team went far beyond expectations and helped with inspections and setting up appintments for some minor repairs. If you wnat expert help in purchasing or selling a home contact Wes Madden and team."

Client Audio Testimonials

Laura -"First of all, they sold my house very quickly at a fair price. They did all the legwork so I really was able to go to work and focus on what I needed to focus on in my life. They helped me buy a new house and they managed to coordinate both the sale and the purchase of my new house all on the same day. On one occasion Greg Merdes came out at 26 below zero to find the waste vents for our septic system because my husband was unable to do it. And so Greg borrowed his equipment from someone, came out, dug around, and found the waste vents and marked them on his own time and on a Sunday at 26 below zero. He did not have to do that."